Consul General @mbuciom and artist Mariana Lagunas inaugurated the exhibition Mariana Lagunas: In Motion, marking the artist’s debut in New York City. Through her figurative painting, Lagunas explored optimism as a complex and often contradictory force, reflecting resilience in the face of uncertainty. Her works, featuring messages such as Cosas Bonitas, invited viewers to pause, appreciate beauty, and reflect on the transient nature of life. The exhibition was open to the public at the Consulate General of Mexico until November 14, 2025. We extend our gratitude to Mariana Lagunas and curator Emireth Herrera Valdés for sharing this remarkable work.
About the exhibition:
Through her figurative and realist paintings, Lagunas explores optimism as a complex and contradictory force, one that moves between comfort and pressure, gratitude and frustration. Her works capture human figures suspended between motion and contemplation, reflecting the universal hope that everything will be fine, even in moments of uncertainty.
Short, affirmative phrases such as Cosas Bonitas (“Pretty Things”) and Todo Bien (“All Good”) resonate throughout her work, referencing the language of digital communication and embodying memories, personal narratives, and the currents that drive us forward.
In her site-specific installation, Lagunas transforms materials like cardboard, stitching, and urgent text into layered metaphors. Cardboard evokes fragility and impermanence; stitching suggests repair and care; urgent text signals immediacy and collective pressure. Together, these elements reveal the labour, attention and resilience that sustain us amid instability.
With In Motion, Lagunas invites viewers to pause, appreciate beauty, and reflect on life’s transitory nature—reminding us that optimism, though fragile, can be an act of resistance.
Pure Moon Gallery presented Mariana Lagunas: Cosas Bonitas, curated by Emireth Herrera Valdés, marking the artist’s New York City debut.
Through her figurative and realist painting, Lagunas explored optimism as a complex and often contradictory force—one that oscillated between comfort and pressure, gratitude and frustration.
Her work focused on the human figure, alone or in groups, caught between motion and contemplation, reflecting the universal desire to believe that everything will be fine, even amid inner conflict or uncertainty. Short, positive messages such as Cosas Bonitas (“Pretty Things”) and Todo Bien (“All Good”) recurred throughout her work, referencing the familiar language of digital communication. For Lagunas, these words embodied memories, personal narratives, and the impulses that move us forward.
With Cosas Bonitas, Lagunas invited viewers to pause, appreciate beauty, and reflect on life’s transitory nature. Her works reminded us that optimism—though fragile—can be an act of resistance, a way to face uncertainty while holding on to the belief that, somehow, everything will be fine.
Born in Culiacán, Sinaloa, in 1977.
Mariana holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the Tecnológico de Monterrey (ITESM), Sinaloa, Mexico.
In 2021, she presented Todos Bien, curated by Emireth Herrera, at the Antonio López Sáenz Art Gallery (GAALS) in Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico. In 2023, she presented Peligro y Oportunidad, curated by Catalina Restrepo, at Galería Casa Lamm in Mexico City, Mexico.
In 2020, she was selected to participate in the book Memorias de una Pandemia Culiacán 2020, published by the Municipal Institute of Culture of Culiacán (IMCC), Sinaloa, Mexico.
Her work also appears in Memorias de una Pandemia, published in 2020 by the Municipal Institute of Culture of Culiacán (IMCC), Sinaloa, Mexico.